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Tag: skincare

My therapist gave me permission to shop (yes, she’s the best), so I have been doing my best to stem the tide of shattering grief by buying things. I suppose it’s working, considering I’m not crying my face off right now?

Here’s what I bought:

Two black tees. I’m taking a little vacation from that denim-shirts-as-performance-art thing I’ve been doing for a while now, and have decided that my summer look is going to be a tight t-shirt tucked into a denim skirt. I wasn’t planning on all black tees–one is linen, the other is a cotton/ modal blend–but so far haven’t seen a v-neck in the right grey. V-necks don’t seem to be in at the moment?

Sweet Georgia Tough Love Sock yarn in Lady Grey. I’m normally not a fan of superwash yarns due to the texture, but this stuff is lovely–really nice feel, soft halo, gorgeous colour. I’m also not normally a sock knitter, so this will end up as a scarf. I’m even hand-winding the ball, just to maximize the textural pleasures.

Papa Recipe Bombee Ginseng Red Honey Oil sheet mask. No idea if I’ll like this mask or not, but I’ve heard good things about Papa Recipe, so my hopes are high(ish).

Missha Shower Towel. This promises “Best Quality & High Life” on the package, and you know I love the high life. I use an epilator, which requires an on-point exfoliation game. I’m hoping this scratchy thing–it has the texture of a pot-scrubber–will do the trick.

Atelier Cologne in Figuier Ardent. This perfume blends fig leaf from Provence, bergamot from Calabria, and tonka bean from Brazil. Fuck knows what a goddamn tonka bean is (this? [actually this is kind of interesting]) but this perfume is a favourite of mine–green and fresh, yet sultry at the same time. It is gorgeous and interesting. (I do not know how to talk about smells.) This is actually a re-purchase; my first 7.5mL travel spray lasted about a year and a half (I rotate between 4 or 5 different scents). I do think the full size is worth it, but in the context of this weekend’s shopping-for-happiness thing, I decided that 100mL would not make me happer than 7.5 mL, so here we are.

Tarte Amazonian Clay Waterproof Liner in Black. Using that handy Wayne Goss technique, I’ve been using a black eyeshadow to line my eyes, and generally managing to not make a total hash of it. But the shadow does not stay put–especially if I’ve been dancing and getting sweaty–so I’m hoping to use the Goss technique with this Tarte liner for smudge-free fun times. The Tarte liner was recommended by Tamara at the Robson Sephora, and she seemed like a trusty little gal. Also I love the gold lid–so shiny!

This /r/AsianBeauty thread on peptides was super interesting reading, particularly since I’ve added The Ordinary’s “Buffet” peptide product to my routine. (I’m currently avoiding the unpleasant smell by using a single drop of product around my eyes and on my forehead.) Even if I don’t stick with the “Buffet” long-term, I think I’m always going to want a peptide product in my routine!

My recent skinsuit maintenance purchase included one of Skinfood’s Jelly Peau wash off masks. Since this is a new product and there isn’t much information out there, it seemed like a good candidate for a little review. No affiliate links or anything shady here–just me spending my own money on face goo.

I was mostly attracted to the name of this product–there is something about jelly peau that just amuses me. Peau is French for skin… so… jelly skin? I feel like jelly skin isn’t really something I want–I mean, jelly skin would be jiggly, no?–but it sounds funny!

The jelly peau masks–jelly peaux, if you will–come in four flavours: banana for nourishing, grape for moisturizing, peach for vitalizing, and strawberry for hydrating. Since every cell in my body is in need of a vitalizing, I decided to go with the peach.

The Peach Jelly Peau smells like peach schnapps–a very synthetic, candy-like scent, as opposed to a natural fruity scent. The texture is like jello that was made with a little too much water–mostly solid but if you scoop a bunch up on your finger and then fart around with your phone trying to take a photo, it will start to drip.

The little capsule contains enough jelly for two or three uses. Note, however, that this type of one-time use product doesn’t have the right kind of preservative system to survive being open for a long period of time. If you opt for multiple uses, cover the product tightly with cling wrap, and use within a day or so. I did two uses, about 24 hours apart.

How to use: cleanse face; open package; smear jelly on face; take a terrifying selfie you will never show anyone; wait ten minutes; rinse off; proceed with the rest of your routine.

The mask is easy to wear. Even with a relatively thick layer of the jelly on my face, it did not drip. Over the ten-minute wait time, the mask dried down to a shiny, slightly sticky film. It was relatively easy to wash off–no scrubbing required.

I decided to try out the jelly peau on a day when I had a headache. I had skipped doing any kind of a morning routine due to the brain-melting pain, so in the evening, my skin was in need of a little extra cleansing. I washed my face with Lee Ji Ham White-P Zyme Enzyme Powder Wash, and then applied the jelly peau mask.

After rinsing off the mask, my skin felt smooth and soft. However, it was slightly drying. I don’t think this is a problem for people with normal to oily skin–you just need to follow up with the hydrating/ moisturizing steps of your routine–but if you have dry skin, this mask probably won’t do you many favours.

I would say that the peach jelly peau mask is good for a day like my headache day. That is, it’s good for a day when you want a little extra cleansing that won’t be too harsh. Compared to other products I use, the effects of the peach jelly peau mask are similar to those of the Holika Holika Gudetama Lazy & Easy peeling gel.

I enjoyed using the jelly peau. At approximately $1.75 (CAD), it’s a nice little light weight item to add to your cart if you are ordering from a site like TesterKorea that does shipping charges by weight bracket. I don’t plan to repurchase this product, however. Considering the effects, I’d prefer to just use my Gudetama peeling gel, and then use my buck seventy-five for a nice sheet mask.

This is the first time I ordered from TesterKorea. I desperately wanted the Yuri Pibu Parsley Herb Lotion, and after weighing the price-plus-shipping possibilities of ordering from Glow Recipe, eBay, or TesterKorea, TK seemed the way to go. I paid about CAD$15 in shipping, but TK had the lowest price on the lotion, and I was able to slip enough other fun stuff into the box to make the shipping cost worth it.

Timeline:

Order placed August 24;

Order shipped August 31;

Order delivered September 12.

Three weeks-ish from ordering to delivery is pretty good, I think, for items coming from South Korea. I have heard that TK can sometimes be very slow to ship, so be aware of that if you need to restock in a hurry.

All of these products are new to me, so no reviews–yet!

[FYI: no affiliate links or anything shady in this post. Just me spending my own monies on skin stuff.]

Deciem wasn’t on my skincare radar until the launch of their new line, The Ordinary, a couple of weeks ago. Since the launch, I’ve had a Deciem tab open in my browser but for some reason haven’t felt right pulling the trigger on the products that interest me–which is saying something, considering my usual enthusiasm for throwing money at skincare (and skincaretainment). Yoga Nerd MD’s thoughts on Deciem’s pseudo-scientific marketing language helped me to articulate my uneasiness with the brand. Simply put, I don’t like the way the brand writes about itself. I’ve now closed that Deciem tab, and while it’s possible that wildly glowing reviews may convince me otherwise, I currently have no plans to purchase from any of their lines.

As someone who washed up on the shores of the Asian Beauty subreddit as a refugee from the vapid beauty writing of sites like xoVain, I am deeply appreciative of the thoughtfulness with which many AB fans approach their skincare.